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HAMB FASTBNER. No. 285,428. Patented Sept. 25, 1883.

WITNESSES INVENTOP i t; 24112 i ATTORNEY.

u. PEYERS. Phnblilbognphen wmv m n. r.

v UNITED STATES ANDREW NIGOUM, OF TOPEKA, KANSAS; JAMES R. N ICOUM ADMINISTRATOR PATENT OFFroE,

OF SAID NIGOUM, DECEASED.

HAM E-FASTENER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 285,428, dated September 25, 1883.

Application filed January 15. 1880.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ANDREW Nioooiu, of Topeka, in the county of Shawnee and State of Kansas, have invented a new and valuable Improvement in Hame-Fasteners; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings,

' making a part of this specification, and to the 20. er, and embraces the following peculiar features: a slotted or bifurcated bar, provided at one end with a hook to engage with the breastloop of the hame on one side, and a curved linkingloop to connect with the breast-loop of the hame on the opposite side, and having hinged upon the other end a hook-lever,

which, after engaging with another loop of the first hame, returns and shuts into the said slotted bar, thereby tightening and locking both hames into the crease of a horse-collar, all of which is hereinafter more fully described, and illustrated by the accompanying drawings, in which like letters designate identical parts of my device in the different figures, respectively.

The letter A represents the metallic bar, into the longitudinally slotted recess a of which the hinging-lever B shuts and looks, like a knife-blade into its handle. At the lower or bent end of bar A a curved linkingloop, I), is provided, with which to connect, by a suitable breast-chain, s, or otherwise, said bar with the breast-loop c of the hame C; also, the upper part of the bent end is extended into the hook d, which curves upward and is made to engage with the breast-loop e of the hame D. The lever Bis made of suitable size and shape, out of a metallic plate, so as to have its bottom edge, f, nicely fit into said recess a whenever the lever is turned upon its hinges i, and shut into its bar-case, as aforesaid. The lever B is also provided with a laterallycut slot, forming both the recess and the hook 9, also a thumb-piece, 7c,.a11d, lastly, with a check lug or block, a. i p

The hame Dlwhich would be the outside hame in the case of a span of horses-*is provided not only with the usual breast-loop, 6, but with another loop or ring, 71, hung at such a distance above the said breast-loop as to allow the loop h to fall into the aforesaid lateral slot in the locking-lever B, and also the hook g to easily engage within it. Thethumb-piece 7c is for springing and shutting the latch-plate B, and the check-block n, by resting against the shoulder above the hinge t, limits the backward movement of the latch-plate whenever the latch is opened.

By the above-described means, my hamelocking device being interchangeably linked to the hame on either side of the horse, and

the loops 0 and h suitably hung at the aforesaid distances apart upon the other hame, whenever the hames are placed in the usual way upon the horsecol lar, the hook (I caught into the loop c, the hook 9 into theloop h, and the latching-lever B turned into its recess a, then the hook d, acting as the first lever, will draw the two breast-loops together and the breast-chain taut, while the action of shutting the second lever, B, will draw the whole latching device still farther upward along the outside edge of the hame, and the loop h downward, thereby firmly locking both hames in place.

It will be readily seen that the above-described actions of the two hook-levers A and B, the first separately, then both conjointly, not only draw the breast-loops very easily together, but, both the latching-lever and its corresponding or engaged loop having passedthe dead-point of opening pressure, said pressure instantly changes into a closing one, and thus keeps the latch firmly locked, therefore,

WVhat I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The slotted or bifurcated lever-bar A, provided with the hook d, and the linkingloop b, in combination with the hinged and latching lever B, provided with the drawing and reversing hook g, the thumbpiece 7c, and In testimony that I claim the above I have the check-lug n, substantially as and for the hereunto subscribed my name in the presence purposes herein specified. of two witnesses.

2. The hame-Iinking 100p h, acting at first ANDREWV NICCUM. 5 separately with the reversing-hook g, and then Vitnesses eonjointly with the latching-lever B, substan- XV. F. PARKER, tially as and for the purposes herein specified. J. M. THRAPP. 

